Island



(No Model.)

7 W. H. NIXON. RAILWAY TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

No. 555,222. Patented Feb. 25, 1896.

WITNESSES. INVENTDH- MM Q Www 4 54 gamut-S 6 w Q UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

IVILLIAM H. NIXON, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO THE NIXONTELEPHONE AND ELECTRICAL CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, OF

RHODE ISLAND.

RAILWAY TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 555,222, dated February25, 1896.

Application filed January 28, 1895. Serial No. 536,437. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM H. NIXON, of Providence, in the county ofProvidence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Railway Telephone Systems; and I do herebydeclare that the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, and to theletters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

This invention relates to railway telephoning, and especially to thatpart of such telephoning designed to expedite the unblocking or clearingof the track of a railway in case of an accident or when a train isdelayed for any reason, and has for its immediate object to facilitateon railways prompt communication between the conductor of a delayed orderailed train and the superintendentor traindispatcher, and alsobetween such conductor and the conductor of a train that may be waitingon the next switch, in case of a streetrailway, and the system alsoprovides means for communicating from the station at one end of adivision with the station at the other end with the portable telephoneconnecting arrangement cut out of the circuit.

It is fully described and illustrated in this specification andaccompanying drawing.

The construction and arrangement of the system are as follows:

Two wires a 0. represent the wires of a railway signal and telephoningconnection having a metallic circuit through the telephones at each endbetween the superintendents office N and the train-dispatchers office J.

a represents a third wire having no connec-' tion with the wires a a,except when the switch I) is turned to point e at the end of wire a. Aseries of pairs of wires 0 c are connected, the wires 0 of each pair tothe wire a, and the wires 0 to the wire a. By connecting a portabletelephone C to any one of these pairs of wires 0 c with the switch I) atpoint c, it will be put into connection with the offices N and J andwith a portable telephone connected in like manner with it at any otherpair 0 c on wires to.

hen the two offices N J wish to communicate with each other withouthaving their messages liable to be short-circuited or taken off by aportable telephone inserted between the wires of some one of the pairs 0c, the switch can be turned off, as shown by the dotted line, which willcut the wire a and all the portable telephone connection 0 0 out of thecircuit between the two offices N and J and leave the main line forthrough messages only.

The advantage of this system of communication between conductors andtheir superintendent and train-dispatcher will be readily understood, asno matter at what point upon the system the train may be stopped theportable telephone enables a conductor in one minutes time to enter intooral communication with the superintendent or train-dis patcher, andupon a street-railway the conductors can communicate with each other,thereby saving a blockade of the road for a considerable length of time.

Upon a street-railway, in case of a blockade from any cause whatever,the conductor of a car who arrives upon a switch upon which he issupposed to meet another car makes a connection by means of the flexiblewire cord with the cutting-in device upon the pole nearest to line andwaits for a call from the conductor of the car he was to have met. Theconductor of the delayed car, knowing the time at which the otherconductor will .be waiting for him, makes connection described above,telling him of the cause of the delay, thereby enabling him to run hiscar to the obstruction, where they exchange passengers and proceed totheir respective destinations.

Having thus described my improvements, I claim as my invention anddesire to secure by Letters Patent- A railway telephone systemconsisting of a metallic conductor, as a, two telephones one at each endof said conductor, means for completing the circuit between saidtelephones,

a second metallic conductor, as a", normally metallic conductorsnormally open but capaelectrically connected to the opposite pole of bleof being electrically connected together IO one of said telephones tothat to which is conby a portable telephone, substantially as denectedthe other metallic conductor, a switch scribed.

normally closed to make the connection of \VILLIAM H. NIXON. the secondmetallic conductor and telephone \Vitnesses:

but capable of being opened, and a series of BENJ. ARNOLD,

pairs of branch Wires, as c and c, from the E. B. READ.

